TommieMedia Honored With six Journalism Awards

TommieMedia, the University of St. Thomas’ student-run news, sports and entertainment website, was a first-place winner and a top-three finisher in five other categories in awards presented by two professional media associations last weekend.

National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences

TommieMedia journalist Michael Ewen, who graduated in 2011, won top honors from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences for a sports feature story, “Old Friends Skate on New Team.” The winners for the NATAS Upper Midwest Chapter were announced Sunday, April 1.

Mark of Excellence, Society of Professional Journalists

The Society of Professional Journalists’ Mark of Excellence judges recognized TommieMedia for its work with five awards in four categories. Colleges and universities from Minnesota, Wisconsin and the Dakotas competed.

TommieMedia received third place for Best Independent Online Student Publication; reporters and editors honored include Rita Kovtun, Alex Keil ’11, Miles Trump ’11 and Ryan Shaver.

Kovtun, with a story on a Paralympic swimmer, placed second for her work in Television In-Depth Reporting. She also placed third with Keil for their work in Online Feature Reporting. In the Online Sports Reporting category, Trump placed second and Shaver picked up third.

The SPJ winners were announced Friday, March 30, at the Minnesota SPJ Mark of Excellence Awards.

TommieMedia is an online destination for student-reported news at the University of St. Thomas. Visitors to TommieMedia are provided a variety of multimedia content, slide shows and videos. State, national and world headlines are regularly updated on the website through a partnership with the Associated Press.